Friday, April 22 2005 20:10 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

On Board Special Plane: The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) needed to acquire a "new focus and direction" in the wake of changing times, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said today (Apr 22, 2005) as he prepared to address the summit of Asian and African countries in Jakarta.

"Times have changed. NAM needs to acquire a new focus and direction," Singh told reporters accompanying him on his three-day visit to Jakarta.

He expressed confidence that the two-day Asian-African summit, which began today and which he will attend tomorrow, will help India further strengthen its relations with the countries of Asia and Africa, particularly in the field of trade.

Noting that South-South cooperation had increased lately, he said there was still scope for tremendous opportunity to promote such ties at bilateral and multilateral fora.

He said India desired to be a partner of various processes in Asia, including ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) and East Asian Summit, as part of its 'Look East' policy.

India has been invited to participate in the East Asian Summit later this year, Singh said.

Pointing out that Africa and West Asia had vast resources of energy, he said India, whose hydrocarbon needs were increasing, could benefit from stronger cooperation with the countries of these continents.

He, however, said there was a need for greater security and predictability of supplies of energy.

Singh said he would meet leaders of various countries, including Chinese President Hu Jintao and Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and convey India's eagerness to work with neighbours and other countries for South-South cooperation.

On terrorism, Singh described it as a "global phenomenon" and emphasised the need for collective wisdom, knowledge and experience to combat the menace.

He said India has been raising concerns regarding the menace at bilateral and multilateral fora and would do the same in the Asian-African summit.

Singh described his attendance at the Asian-African Summit tomorrow as a "sentimental journey" because of the leading role played by then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in the 1955 Bandung summit.

"Bandung reminds of the tremendous moral and political force that Nehru represented and the contribution he made to accelerate the non-aligned process and role he played to bring countries of the Third World on single platform of NAM," the Prime Minister said.